


Damian’s Grandfather is an Interfering Bitch

by BabyGenius



Series: A Bat in A White Collar [5]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, Forever (TV 2014), White Collar
Genre: But she doesn’t have a very large part, Case Fic, Damian Wayne is Autistic, Damian is Demon Brat, Dick Grayson is Neal Caffrey, Dr. Henry Morgan - Freeform, Forever, Gen, He’s also a jerkface, I didn’t mean to it just happened, I haven’t triple checked, Mentions of Murder, Neal Caffrey is Dick Grayson, Peter is Done With this Shit, Ra’s Al Ghul is mentioned, So done, Texting, There are no swears except in the title, There is a surprise cameo from, There is an original character, from, i think
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2020-07-26
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:28:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,394
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25198495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BabyGenius/pseuds/BabyGenius
Summary: The doors opened and Neal walked through, his eyes narrowing when he saw the kid in his chair. “Damian, what are you doing here?”Damian turned his scowl on Neal, but it didn’t seem as condescending as when he was looking at Peter. “Grandfather is being…troublesome, and Father sent me to you while he takes care of him.”——It’s Damian’s turn to visit the office. He brings a guest to New York with him, not that anyone notices at first. Peter just wanted to have one brother visit that didn’t bring so many issues or problems (whether it be informational or otherwise) with them. He could only imagine how bad Neal’s father is.
Relationships: Bruce Wayne & Talia al Ghul, Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne, Neal Caffrey & Peter Burke
Series: A Bat in A White Collar [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1790395
Comments: 118
Kudos: 447





	1. Peter’s Headache (Hint: Both Causes Start With the Letter ‘D’—Not that He Knows That)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, I was really busy yesterday and I didn’t have it done the day before yesterday. Guess what....This is gonna be multi-chapter! It’ll probably either be a two-shot or three, I don’t know yet, but it won’t be many.  
> Also, I’m honestly astounded by how well this series has been received, it’s amazing and I totally wasn’t expecting it. I’m glad so many of you enjoyed these stories, and I hope I don’t disappoint you in the future!  
> Happy Reading!

Peter was getting kind of sick of these new people coming and messing up the work day to see Caffrey. Never mind that it had only happened twice before, it was still getting old. This time, it was a small, olive skinned child who couldn’t have been more than ten. His black hair was almost as messy as the other brothers’ had been, with wild curls that had only partially been tamed. His eyes, unlike the others (including Caffrey’s) were a bright grassy green, and his face seemed to be fixed in a permanent scowl.

Peter sent a glance heavenward, wishing at that moment that he could just turn back around and go home for the day, if only to avoid whatever information dump was going to happen this time. He and Neal actually had a case, so it’s not like he could just tell Neal to leave the office for a really early lunch break.

He turned his eyes back to the kid on the chair. “Why are you here?”

The kid scowled even more, “ _Tt_ , that’s none of your business.” Peter noted with surprise that the kid had a light Arabic accent painting his words.

The rest of the office surreptitiously turned their ears to the conversation, wondering what the kid thought he was doing talking to Peter like that. Peter scowled back and retorted, “Considering you’re in an FBI office, and I am an FBI agent, I think it is my business.”

The kid sniffed—sniffed! Who does that like that anymore—and turned his nose up. Peter sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, at this rate he was going to form a permanent indent there. _Maybe I should just move my office down here, that way I can supervise all of Neal’s “visitors” more easily_ , he thought.

The doors opened and Neal walked through, his eyes narrowing when he saw the kid in his chair. “Damian, what are you doing here?”

Damian turned his scowl on Neal, but it didn’t seem as condescending as when he was looking at Peter. “Grandfather is being…troublesome, and Father sent me to you while he takes care of him.”

“And Tim is…?” Neal prompted, pulling up a spare chair.

“Drake is assisting Father.” Damian turned away before bursting out, “I don’t understand why he won’t let me help! I’m the blood son! It’s my grandfather, I should be the one to take care of him! To have Todd do it is adding salt to the injury!”

Amari interrupted, a sympathetic smile on her face, “I’m sure it’s just because you’re younger and your father can help your grandfather more easily.”

Damian looked at her with contempt. “Not that kind of take care of. You Americans and your idioms are…odd.”

Neal laughed. “Yes, yes they are. You get used to it eventually. And it’s ‘adding _insult_ to injury’.”

“ _Tt_ , I don’t want to ‘get used to it’, and I don’t care.”

Peter placed his head in his hand, subconsciously filing the part where Neal had referred to himself as separate from an American. “If you didn’t mean ‘take care of’ in the caring sense, please tell me your father isn’t going to kill your grandfather?”

Damian scoffed, “ _Tt_ , father…unfortunately…has a no-killing policy. Besides, it is almost impossible to kill my grandfather, he is always brought back.”

Neal fixed Damian with a scolding look. “Dami, what have we told you? Killing people is bad. You know this.”

Damian shrugged and didn’t say anything else. Peter decided to ignore what Neal had said and save that can of worms for later, opting instead to say, “We have a case today, Neal, so I don’t know how effective it was to send your little brother to us to be watched.”

Neal looked between his brother and Peter, his eyebrows furrowed. “He could come with us? I don’t trust him enough to leave him at June’s—” He turned to Damian here, adding, “And by don’t trust I mean I don’t trust you to not try and go take care of your grandfather yourself.”

Damian scowled harder and looked away, not bothering in denying anything, which Peter found somewhat concerning.

 _God help me_ , Peter thought. “It’s not part of protocol to take him with us. Why not just leave him at the office?”

Neal laughed. “It would be easier to escape the office than it would be to escape June’s for him.”

Diana scoffed, “Your whole family escape artists, Caffrey?”

Neal seemed to think for a second before shrugging and nodding. “Yeah, basically.”

“Todd isn’t much of one.” Neal turned an scolding gaze on his little brother and cuffed him upside the head. “He’s one of the best, don’t discount that just because of one occurrence. Besides, I didn’t see you getting out of my knots when we first met.”

“Knots?” Jones asked, concerned about what exactly he meant.

Damian snarled and glared at Neal, “I almost had you.”

Neal shrugged with a smug grin. “True, you did get a lot of good hits in, but I beat you in the end, didn’t I?” When Damian didn’t say anything, his grin widened. “Exactly.”

“Is this the same incident where he tried to kill you?” Paterson asked.

Neal looked at the people around him and shrugged. “It was an eventful first meeting.” He didn’t say anything else, even though the agents tried to needle him for more.

“Anyway,” Peter cleared his throat to bring things back on track. “We have a case, it’s a robbery of a rich family uptown, there was also a death.”

Neal shrugged. “We can leave Dami in the car.”

Damian looked outraged by the mere suggestion of such a thing. “You will do no such thing, G—Caffrey!”

Neal grinned and ruffled his brother’s hair, ignoring Damian’s attempts to duck out from under his hand. “I most certainly will, Little D.”

“What if I tell father?” Damian smirked triumphantly as though he had won a great battle. Though, considering the fact that it was a Neal he was arguing with, maybe that triumph was justified.

Neal smirked back, crossing his arms. “So? B will understand. Besides, I doubt he’d want you to go into an active crime scene, considering the last time you ‘wandered in’—” he used finger quotes here—“you not only called the detective a bumbling idiot, but you also managed to insult everyone’s competence and appearance at the same time. We’re trying to avoid a repeat of that mistake.”

Peter gaped at the kid in front of him and the audacity required to do what he had done, whether it was true or not. “You’ll be staying in the car, kid.”

Damian scoffed but said nothing.

——

The car ride to the crime scene was only somewhat tense, but it was quiet all the same. Damian sat pouting in the back seat, and Neal only occasionally threw glances back there, otherwise he was texting someone else.

**Dick:** _Why’d you send Dami here??? He ambushed_

_me @ office and I have a case_

**Bruce:** _Ra’s is causing issues and trying to take_

_Damian back, had to get him out of Gotham_

**Dick:** _You couldn’t have sent him to Roy or Jason_

_or smthn?_

**Bruce:** _No, you know Damian would give Harper the slip,_

_and he doesn’t respect Jason as much as he does_

_you_

**Dick:** _Hmm, fine_

Try and _get it resolved quickly_

 **Bruce:** _That was the plan_

Neal looked up at Peter. “Do we have anymore details on the case?”

Peter nodded. “I’ll discuss them when we get out of the car, since there are little ears here.”

Damian scowled. “If you mean to imply that I cannot handle simple case facts because of my age, you would be mistaken.”

Neal sighed and shook his head. “Dami, we’re not discussing and open case with you, even if you can handle it.”

Damian looked away. “Your loss.”

Peter shook his head before focusing completely on the road again. In just a few minutes, they arrived in front of the building. Peter got out and waited for Neal as the conman threatened to restrain his younger brother if he didn’t stay in the car. The kid huffed, folding his arms, and gave a jerky nod.

Neal eyed Damian with suspicion before turning and joining Peter. “So, what’s the case?”

“There was a robbery last night, and the husband got up to investigate. The wife waited, but when he didn’t come back up, she went down herself and called 911. When she got down there, the husband was dead—slashed neck—and half of their valuables were gone. However, when we did an inventory on these, some of the things they said were real weren’t, so we don’t know if they bought from really shady people or if they were trying to get more insurance money on the stolen pieces. Wife’s name is Ali Dexter, husband’s was Kay.”

Neal nodded. A uniform met them by the door, telling them about things they had found and leading them to the wife. She looked up when they entered the room, wiping just under her eyes to get rid of excess moisture. Neal gave her a soft smile and sat down in front of her and Peter sat down next to him.

“Mrs. Dexter, how are you holding up?”

She waved a hand, her eyes still watery. “Ali, please. I’m holding up as well as you would expect after someone murdered my husband.”

Neal nodded sympathetically. Peter showed the woman his badge. “I’m Agent Peter Burke, and this is Neal Caffrey, he’s a consultant. Can you tell us what happened?”

Ali nodded, composing herself. “Well, it’s like I told the police. It was around 4 in the morning—I usually check what time I wake up if I wake up when it’s still dark out, since I haven’t been sleeping well—and both Kay and I woke up because we heard a thud from downstairs. Kay—he told me he was going to go take a look, said it was—was probably raccoons or something, and that he’d—that he would be back in a few seconds.” Her voice sounded choked with grief, and Neal rested a palm over her hands comfortingly. She gave him a watery smile before continuing.

“When some time had passed, and he still hadn’t—hadn’t come back up, I got concerned and went down to check on him. He was—he was j-just lying there, and his eyes, oh his eyes!” She leaned forward and put her head in a hand, her shoulders shaking. “It was so horrible, so—so bloody.” Her words were muffled by her hand, but they were still clear.

Neal gave her a sad grimace, tilting up her chin gently with his index finger. “Would you like a hug, Ali?” He asked.

Peter gave him a look. _Now is not the time to flirt._

Neal shook his head and gave him a slight glare before turning to Ali, who had nodded and flung herself into his arms, breaking down in quiet sobs. “I just—I don’t—Kay was such a great man. Why would anyone—?” She didn’t continue, only clutched harder.

She slowly stopped after only a minute, squeezing Neal one last time before backing off and bringing a tissue up to wipe her face. “Thank you,” she said, her eyes grateful. Neal only nodded. Ali took a deep, shuddering breath before continuing, “At least a third of the things we keep on display were gone. Some of those were family heirlooms.”

Peter nodded, obviously uncomfortable with the tears. “And you’re sure they’re real? We’ve been told that someone was in to analyze them and that some of them were fake, but in your insurance filing it says they’re real.”

Ali sniffled, taking the offered tissue from Neal and blowing her nose. “I was told they were real by the people we bought them from and from my parents and grandparents for the heirlooms. I didn’t realize some of them were fake.”

“Can you give me a list of the people you bought them from?” Peter asked.

Ali nodded. “Yes, of course. We always keep a record for these sort of things. Just give me a moment.”

Neal and Peter nodded and watched as she walked out of the room. Neal turned to Peter, saying, “I’m completely certain she’s just a victim here.”

Peter met his eyes and nodded. “I am, too. I’m thinking she was either scammed by multiple buyers or they were all one person or company.”

Neal nodded in agreement.

Peter allowed a few seconds to pass before turning to him and asking, “So what’s the deal with your brother?”

Neal smirked. “You mean the one in the car? What do you mean by ‘what’s the deal’?”

Peter shrugged, feigning nonchalance. “I just mean, this whole thing with sending him to you so his grandfather can’t get him. Why?”

Neal considered him for a second, his eyebrows furrowing as he thought of how to word his answer. “Damian’s mother is the daughter of a… _very_ bad man. Kind of like criminal empire sort of thing?” Peter listened with his eyes narrowed. “Anyway, my guardian wound up falling in love with her and they...y’know.” Neal was obviously very uncomfortable talking about his guardian’s sex life, Peter noted with no small amount of amusement.

Neal cleared his throat before continuing, “Then Damian’s mother became pregnant with him, had him, and then raised him for the first nine years of his life before promptly giving him to my guardian because her father was starting to scare her and they were…being hunted.” Neal held up a hand. “Not by the FBI. Damian wasn’t raised in America.”

Peter cocked his head in consideration before leveling a finger at Neal. “I don’t think you’re lying, but I also think you’ve left quite a few things out, so I reserve the right to question you about them later.”

Neal shrugged. “Fine by me.”

Ali came back in the room, then, papers and a tablet in her hands. She noticed Neal and Peter looking at them and shrugged with a self-conscious smile, saying, “We keep paper copies and digital, just in case.”

Neal made an impressed face and muttered, “That’s pretty smart.”

Ali smiled at him before handing him the tablet and Peter the papers. “They’re in chronological order of when we bought them on both paper and the tablet.”

Neal scrolled through the tablet, noticing that several names of companies that had allegedly sold the goods rang a bell. He pulled out his phone and shot off a text to Tim, asking for a list of shell companies the League was known to operate with.

**Tim:** _…What’s the reason_

 **Dick:** _Working a case, thought it might be_

_tied w/ Damian being here_

**Tim:** _Hmph, fine_

_But you owe me._

**Dick:** _I’ll fix your phone back to English?_

 **Tim:** _Nah, it’s helping me learn the language 😈_

_However, you can make dinner for me_

_when I visit after the League thing blows over_

**Dick:** _*sigh* fine_

 **Tim:** _Did u srsly just type “*sigh*”? Lmao_

 **Dick:** _Oh shut up_

Neal put his phone away and looked up to see Peter looking at him. “I have a source looking into some of the companies that ring a bell.”

Peter sighed and shrugged. “Fine.”

Neal gave him a winning smile before returning to the list of sellers. He put his fist under his chin as he thought. “Some of these aren’t necessarily legal—” Upon seeing Ali’s distraught expression, however, he added, “But a those ones usually pretend to be legal. They have a reputation for selling legitimate things since they value their reputation, so I doubt it’s them. A few of these, though, are known for ripping people off, so I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what they did, Ali.”

Ali nodded, her lips at an angle. “I guess I get that, yeah.”

Neal and Peter both checked what was in the other’s hand just to be sure they hadn’t missed anything. Peter nodded after they had both gone through everything and turned to Ali. “Do you mind if we take these papers to do some more research into them?”

Ali nodded earnestly. “Yes, of course.”

Neal eyed the name that had caught his eye, _Irene Dubrovna_. Looks like he had to give Selina a call. Joy. He always loved talking with her. He and Peter exchanged looks before standing up and shaking Ali’s hand.

“If you find anything that could be of further use, here’s my card.” Peter pulled it out and handed to her; Ali gave him a grateful smile and tucked it in a pocket.

“I will.”

——

Fortunately, Damian was still in the car when they got back. Granted, he was pouting, but he was still there. He had his phone in his hand and was staring at the screen while the two got in the car. “That took a while,” he grunted.

Neal chuckled. “No longer than you expected it to take, though. What’ve you got?”

Peter looked at him in confusion. “What do you mean?”

Neal shrugged apologetically (though it seemed faked). “I mean, Damian probably hacked the security cameras that were around the house, as well as their bank reports.”

Damian nodded absentmindedly, still scrolling through his phone. “Some of the companies that they bought their merchandise from were shell companies under control of my grandfather.”

Peter’s eyebrows rose but Neal only nodded as though something he was thinking about had just been confirmed. Peter glared at him. “Mind sharing with the class, Caffrey?”

“Yeah, those companies I sent to my source to look into are the ones that Damian’s looking at. I just didn’t know if he’d have them ready by the time we got out of the house, so—” Neal’s phone dinged an interruption. He pulled it out of his pocket and checked it.

**Tim:** _Here’s your list:_ file.pdf

_I thought we were the ones dealing with Ra’s,_

_what’s he done this time?_

 **Dick:** _Pawned off items and possibly committed murder_

_Not that that’s new, but it is my case so_

**Tim:** _Ah, I’ll leave u to it then_

 **Dick:** _Many thanks_

Peter cleared his throat, and expectant look on his face. “So? Are you going to explain?”

“Right, so I sent the list to my source just in case Damian wasn’t ready. I see now that there was no point, but it was still good to be prepared.”

Peter fixed him with a stern look. “Not what I meant.”

Neal shrugged. “We told him to stay in the car, but we never said anything about hacking the cameras or other things.”

Peter huffed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He would’ve said it was implied, but with how young Damian was he didn’t think it had to be. “Fine. We’re going to go back to the office and check out some of these shell companies. And, when we get there, you can tell me exactly who this grandfather is.”

Neal and Damian exchanged a look, seeming to be speaking to each other in a body language Peter couldn’t understand, before Damian looked away with a sniff and cross of his arms.

This was going to be fun.


	2. Ultimate Sleepover

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group visits a dead guy, a few things are revealed, and they all get to have a sleepover, yay! A few key questions are revealed, as well as a thickening plot. Why are there League members in NYC if not to go after Damian?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, but this one is shaping up to be longer than the others and I didn’t want to end the chapter before I should have. Don’t worry, updates will still be regular. The next one will be either next Friday or Saturday. If you noticed I changed the chapter count, good on you! This is not going to be a two-shot because I could not fit everything in two chapters. This will either have three chapters or four, I don’t quite know yet. But it will have no more than four. Thank you for all of your continued support everyone!  
> On a separate note that has no relevance: I finally got my bagpipes fixed and I’m so happy and excited yay  
> Edit: I completely forgot a chapter title, whoops

Upon returning to the office, Peter immediately pulled Jones and Diana into the conference room with Neal and Damian for a Super Special Secret Meeting. Hughes was already waiting. Damian leaned up against a wall with his arms crossed but didn’t sit, and Peter, at the head of the table, braced himself on it with his hands and a stern look on his face, a look that he turned on Neal. “Alright, spill. Who is this grandfather and why does it seem as though he’s connected to our case?”

Neal and Damian exchanged looks and seemed to communicate something before looking back at Peter. Neal leaned forward in his seat and clasped his hands. “Have you heard of the League of Shadows?”

Jones nodded. “I heard of them during my days in the Navy. But they’re only an urban legend.”

Hughes shook his head, drawing surprised looks from the other agents in the room. “They aren’t just an urban legend. They very much exist. What I don’t understand is what they have to do with this case.”

Neal grimaced. “Well, the leader of the League is named Ra’s Al Ghul, also called the ‘Head of the Demon’ or the ‘Demon’s Head’. He has a daughter named Talia.”

Peter’s eyes widened as he made the connection. “You and your brother Tim referred to him as the ‘Demon Brat’. Is he…?”

Damian uncrossed his arms and stood up straight, scoffing. “My grandfather is Ra’s Al Ghul, Talia is my mother.”

Everyone in the room swivelled their chairs to look at him. Hughes had a suspicious look on his face, his eyes narrowed. “Caffrey, how is your little brother Ra’s’ grandson and why did he come to this office?”

Neal sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, regretting Tim’s visit to the office (he would say he regretted Jason’s, too, but that would be lying) which had stirred everything up and started the process of wrecking his cover. At this point he might as well just go with the flow. “My…guardian, adopted me. Then he adopted the other two that you saw, and we also have a little sister, who technically hasn’t been adopted, running around named Stephanie. Damian is his first biological child, unfortunately with Talia Al Ghul.”

Diana snickered at the Big Brother energy radiating from Neal at the moment. Her eyes furrowed, however, when she realized something. “And just who is this guardian of yours if he knows someone like Talia Al Ghul? You inherit the life of crime from _him_?”

Damian and Neal both closed off. Neal shook his head, a small smirk tilting his lips up for some unknown reason. “That’s not important right now. What’s important is that the League was somehow involved in the murder-robbery case, and I don’t think it’s a coincidence.”

“ _Tt_ , of course it isn’t a coincidence. Grandfather knows better than that.”

Neal shrugged, conceding the point.

“And why is someone who runs a group of assassins involved in jewelry theft?” Peter asked. “And are we sure we shouldn’t be holding the kid in custody?”

Damian scowled. “I’ve broken none of your laws aside from hacking into the camera footage, and if you were not going to arrest me for that before then you should not now.”

Neal nodded, his eyes serious. “He may have been raised in the League, but now he’s being taught differently, and he hasn’t broken any American laws, so you can’t hold him.”

Peter rolled his eyes but let it be. “Fine, but returning to my other question: why is a group of assassins tied to a jewelry theft? Did they murder Kay Dexter?”

“The League has their hands in all matters of the criminal underworld. Assassin-ing is just what they’re known for best. They teach their operatives how to grift, how to steal, how to fit into all manners of society.” Neal shrugged as though this knowledge were normal. “They don’t have much hand in the drug business, but they still have an eye on it.”

Jones scoffed, muttering, “Assassin-ing isn’t a word,” before clearing his throat and raising his eyebrows, saying, “Your brother there hasn’t seemed to fit in like a normal child since he got here. When do they teach you how to grift?”

Damian’s face lost it’s scowl and his eyes brightened, he cocked his head in a sight of picturesque innocence. “You mean like this, sir?” Neal sat quietly snickering as everyone in the room stared at Damian.

“Everyone in the family knows how to put on a performance, even if we learned it from different places. But putting on the act of a different personality all the time can get tiring.”

“Hmm.”

Neal gave one last snicker before turning to Peter. “They could have been behind Kay Dexter, but I’d need to see the body. While they could have been asked to do it a certain way if they were hired, they have a unique signature. Damian should come too.”

“Now hold on just a moment! We are not exposing a child, who isn’t even a teenager, to a corpse!” Peter spluttered.

Damian scoffed. “It isn’t as though I have not seen one before. I have seen more than one, and one more will not harm me.”

Peter groaned in frustration before looking to Hughes for guidance. Hughes’ eyebrows went up as he raised his hands in surrender. “Don’t look at me. It’s hardly protocol, but then having a child raised in the League of Shadows doesn’t take protocol into account, so I think we can make a special allowance in this case. I want you to keep me updated. The League is nothing to mess around with, and I want you all to be as safe as possible.”

Peter nodded, though he had an exasperated expression. “Yes, sir. I guess we’re going to the morgue, team. Get your stuff.”

Jones and Diana exchanged excited looks before going to get their stuff. Peter rubbed at his eyes and went to his office.

Truth be told, Dick was kind of worried about what the involvement of the League could mean. It had never turned out well when they were involved, and the fact that Ra’s was causing trouble in Gotham because of Damian was concerning considering the fact that if he were involved or the cause of the case then he might know where Damian is. (Who was Dick kidding, of course Ra’s knew Damian was at least in NYC, if not exactly where he was. The question was whether or not Bruce would succeed in distracting Ra’s until he gave up, or at least until Damian had moved again and the issue blew over.)

Damian stood in front of Neal’s desk as he collected a few things (Peter didn’t realize that he always carried a small arsenal—perk of Bat Training™) in case they actually did come across members of the League. Peter tapped him on the shoulder as he passed, Diana and Jones following. Neal pushed in his desk drawer before following, dragging Damian after him.

“I could look into this much more efficiently on my own,” Damian muttered.

Neal snorted. “Yeah, sure. You’d have to get past me, first, Little D.”

Peter looked between the two of them as the group walked to the car. “If he was raised in this Assassin Group, wouldn’t it be easy for him to get past you?”

Neal shook his head. “Only for nine years. I’ve been training longer than he’s been alive, and I’ve been trained to pay attention and observe my surroundings, not much gets past me, however much it may seem to.”

Diana snorted. “Yeah, sure. You train as a detective or analyst or something?”

Neal only shrugged mysteriously before sauntering off to wait by the car, leaning against it. “I know that your favorite color is orange, and that Jones sanitizes his desk every morning before anyone gets there and double checks that it’s organized exactly the way he likes it.”

Jones’ eyes furrowed. “How did you—? My desk is behind you across the room and you never go back there.”

Neal shrugged. Damian scoffed and said, “Your desk reeks of santization wipes, and you can see the wear of the cheap brands that you used to use. There are also a few other clues. He does not need to have gone back there.”

Neal ruffled Damian’s hair, ignoring when he ducked out from under his hand. Neal shrugged. “Dami’s right, of course, aside from the fact that sanitization isn’t a word, but, since he wasn’t raised in an English speaking country, we’ll give him a pass.”

Damian glared at him. “Nor were you.”

Neal shrugged. “True, I had my fair share of issues with English as a kid.”

Peter eyed him. “You weren’t raised in America? I would’ve thought, with your accent…”

Neal chuckled. “I’m an alleged conman, Peter, of course I’m good at accents.”

Peter shook his head. The more was revealed about Neal, the more questions he had. He wondered what kind of accent Neal would have had. Peter sighed and huffed, “Get in the car.” He didn’t want to think about that stuff right now, not only were they on a case, but he was already developing a headache as it was.

Neal’s eyes were twinkling as he opened the passenger-side door. Damian got in the back and Diana and Jones got in the second car to follow. Neal’s toes tapped in his shoes, his nerves only known to himself. It was completely likely that Ra’s knew Neal and Peter would be put on this case, and that he had had a hand in it as an attempt to lure Damian out. Dick would be damned if he let the bastard get his little brother, connected by blood or no.

The morgue was relatively close, though it took longer to get there due to New York traffic (ah, New York, such an amazing place to drive in). Dr. Henry Morgan, the medical examiner, led them in. Neal greeted him familiarly, causing the agents to give him a bizarre look. Neal shrugged with a sheepish smile. “Extended-family friend. He’s good friends with the family doctor.”

Diana raised her eyebrows. “You have a family doctor?”

Neal shrugged. Dr. Morgan smiled, “Ah, yes. Leslie tells me you haven’t been to see her in a while. She said to extend her regards if I saw you before she did.”

Neal nodded before motioning to his ankle. “Not much option to go home right now, I’m afraid.”

Henry shook his head in fond frustration. “I see. Well, you all came down here to see the body of Kay Dexter. I must say, it’s odd.”

“What is odd?”

Henry considered Damian a moment before responding. “Well, in the throat slash, there are clear signs of hesitation, as though this were their first—or relatively first—time killing someone. This is something you would expect from an amateur. However, when I examined the body further I found something quite curious. There are a few places one can disguise the mark of a needle, quite effectively, which is something known by most killers for hire. This one used the more imaginative idea of injecting it into a mole.”

Neal nodded. “So they wanted to make sure we thought it was an amateur. Do you mind if I look at the body, Dr. Morgan?”

Henry shook his head. “No, not at all, just be sure to put on gloves.”

Neal nodded before slipping on a pair of examining gloves. “I presume they used the mole on his right shoulder, here?” Henry gave an affirmative sound and Neal nodded before returning to looking at the body. “Even when the League is making it look like an amateur, there’s a certain way they hold the knife when they cut someone’s throat, and a certain flair they add. The more senior members are able to hide or disguise it effectively. This one looks like it was done by someone who hasn’t quite achieved that level yet.”

Dr. Morgan nodded. “Astute observation. The way a man wields a knife can tell you a lot about his or her training.”

“How would you know this? I thought you were nonviolent?” Peter sighed to Neal.

Neal shrugged. “Trade secret. Besides, just because I don’t like it doesn’t mean I can’t do it.”

Peter shook his head but accepted the answer (for now). There were more important things to focus on, like the fact that this was shaping up to be a contract killing rather than the previously conceived accidental murder of a robbery. “But why go through the trouble of injecting him with something if you were just going to slit his throat?”

Henry pointed a finger in the air. “Ah, yes, good question, Agent Burke. The toxin found in his bloodstream was a paralytic. This made it easier for the perpetrator to subdue him and take the time to get the throat slice just right, without him making any noise and alerting his wife upstairs.”

Peters eyebrows furrowed in thought before he gave a courteous smile. “Thank you for your help, Dr. Morgan.”

Henry nodded. “Of course.” He turned, giving a small incline of the head to both Damian and Neal. “Pleasure for see you boys, as always.”

Neal grinned. “Tell Abe I said hi.”

Henry smirked. “He’ll appreciate that. He doesn’t yet know you’re in New York, so I’ve been saved from your shenanigans, fortunately.”

Neal laughed before following Peter and the others, who had started out the door. “Gotta keep you on your toes, old man.”

Henry shook his head in fond amusement before returning to his previous work. Jones gave Neal an odd look as he followed them out the door. “‘Old Man’? He can’t be much older than Peter.”

Neal gave a barking laugh but refused to say anything other than “inside joke”.

When they returned to the office they all gathered in the conference room once again. Peter cleared his throat, “So we know for sure that this was a League hit?”

Neal and Damian both nodded. Damian responded, “Yes. It has all of the signs of what we were taught.”

“And how do you know it was a legitimate hit and not just the common accident of killing someone who discovered you during a robbery?” Diana asked, her eyebrows furrowed.

Neal shook his head. “The League is too professional for that. If they didn’t want to get caught, they wouldn’t have been, especially since we know the killer was one of the more advanced members. They got caught on purpose.”

“How are we supposed to bring down a group located in the Middle East?” Peter groaned.

Neal shrugged apologetically. “You don’t. It’s impossible to take down the entire operation, many have tried, many have failed, including Batman. What we may be able to do, however, is catch the members responsible and turn them over to the Justice League to be taken care of.”

“How would you know about the Batman trying to take down the League of Shadows?” Hughes asked, his eyebrows raised in suspicion.

Neal shrugged. “I was in Gotham for a while, I kept up to date on the Bat’s movements.”

Jones scoffed. “You were on Catwoman’s turf? How’d you survive?”

Damian scoffed. “He and Selina are unbearable together.”

Neal chuckled. “We’re close.”

Peter shook his head. “Focusing back on the task at hand, how exactly are we supposed to catch the ones responsible if they have this fabled League training? I find it hard to believe it’s a matter of watching the cameras for ninja-looking people.”

“No, it’s not that simple. I can ask a few contacts to look into where there are League members in the city. It may take a few days, though, since they’re busy with a few other pressing matters.”

Peter shrugged. “I don’t want to know who those resources are.” His eyes landed on Damian. “Even if the kid was raised with them, are we sure it’s safe to keep him here with this case being investigated? Shouldn’t we return him to his father, where he’d be safer.”

Neal eyed Damian. “You know, maybe we could drop you off with Clark or Diana to be watched while we get this resolved.”

Damian’s scowl deepened—nobody thought that was possible (except Dick, of course)—as he grit out, “I am not going to be watched by the Blue _Buffoon_ in Metropolis. Diana is acceptable, but I would rather stay.”

Neal cocked his head before conceding the point. “True, I wouldn’t want to force you on Clark. He’s too nice for you. And I think Diana is going on a diplomatic envoy in a day or two, so she’s out as well. Guess you’re stuck with me.”

“Oh joy.” Notice the sarcasm, it was strong with this one.

Neal glared at him playfully. “Hey, be nice. I _could_ stick you with Jason and Roy.”

Damian’s eyes snapped up in betrayal. “You wouldn’t.”

“Watch me.”

Diana hid a snicker behind her hand. Jones’ lips were drawn up in a little smirk. Peter raised a hands though his eyes were also twinkling. “Alright, alright, settle down. You can stay here.”

Damian leaned back in triumph, sending a smug look at Neal, who raised his hands in defeat with a fond smile on his face. Hughes cleared his throat. “Do you need to wait for a certain time to call those contacts or are you able to do it now so we can get this case resolved faster?”

Neal nodded and pulled out his phone. “I can contact them now, just give me a few minutes.” He pulled out his smartphone and stepped out of the conference room, already thumbing through his contacts. He had three people he needed to call, just the magic number.

The phone rang for a couple seconds before the person on the other end picked it up with a gruff, “ _What?_ ”

“Well hello to you too, Jay Bird.” Dick smiled easily.

“ _Dickface. What do you need?_ ”

“I can’t just call to say hi?” Dick asked innocently. Jason gave a quick bark of laughter.

“ _Not during your work hours, no. It’s very unlikely. So I’ll ask again, what do you need?_ ”

“You know the League is in NYC?”

Jason growled in frustration. “ _I’d heard whispers, but I’d hoped they were just rumors._ ”

Dick shook his head. “No dice. Ra’s is going after Damian from Gotham, and I don’t know if it’s just a nasty coincidence that our murder suspect is a League of Shadows member during the same time Ra’s’ making a move drove Damian here, or if it was some sort of convoluted plan.”

“ _I’ll make some inquiries and let you know if I find anything._ ”

“Awesome, thanks. And, if you’re not busy, why don’t you come over for dinner when this case is over with?”

“ _Yeah sure, whatever._ ”

Dick laughed. “Love you too, Jay. I’ll hold you to that,” he warned _(“No,_ wait—!”) before hanging up. He pulled up the next contact and pressed call.

They picked up after the second ring. “ _Gordon._ ”

“Hey, Babs.”

“ _Dick! It’s nice to hear from you! But why do I get the feeling this isn’t just a social call?_ ”

Dick grimaced. “Unfortunately, it’s not. I understand it’s an all-hands on deck situation over there now because of Ra’s?”

“ _Yeah, he’s being really persistent all of a sudden, it’s kind of weird. So, what’s up?_ ”

“I’m in the middle of a case, and the vic was killed by an experienced League member. Jason said he’s heard whispers of the League being in New York, so he’s going to check it out for me while I do some checking of my own. Would you mind trying to track them down for me?”

Babs gave a hum of agreement. Dick could hear the near-silent sound of her wheelchair as she moved. “ _Yeah, sure. I thought Bruce sent Damian to you to keep him_ away _from Ra’s?_ ”

Dick nodded even though she couldn’t see it. “Yeah, he did, but the League being here hasn’t actually been confirmed and he was probably tied up trying to get Ra’s off his back to check anything.”

Babs snorted. “ _Understandable. I’d be distracted too. But yeah, I can see what I can find and I’ll let you know soon, okay? When things die down over here I’m going to fly over and visit, okay, so stay safe, y’hear?_ ”

Dick smiled tenderly. “Of course, Babs. You know me.”

“ _I do, which is why I’m making sure to tell you to be careful,_ ” Barbara teased.

Dick shook his head with a chuckle, but allowed her point to go uncontested. “Will do.”

“ _Later, Birdbrain._ ”

“Later, dork.”

The next and last person to call was Bruce. Dick ducked back into the conference room briefly. “Damian, I’m going to call your father, do you want to talk to him?”

Damian considered it for a second before nodding. “I will at least hear what you two are discussing.”

Dick shrugged, “That’s fair,” before ducking back out of the room, leaving behind some slightly stupefied agents.

Bruce picked up before the first ring had even finished. “ _Dick?_ ”

“Hey, B. I’m not dying or anything, don’t worry.”

There was a subvocal grunt over the line, which Dick understood as, “ _Good._ ”

“However, have you heard anything of the League following Dami to New York?”

“ _No. Why? Is the League there?_ ”

“Yeah, we’re pretty sure they are. I’ve got Jason confirming that and Babs looking into where they are.”

“ _Ra’s hasn’t said anything about knowing Damian is in New York. He’s actually been trying to figure out where I sent him, so I don’t know why the League is in New York. How did you hear about it?_ ”

“I’m on a case and our vic was killed by an advanced League member in a staged robbery. I thought it was too much of a coincidence that Ra’s was giving you issues over there and then my case is connected to the League. If Ra’s doesn’t know Damian is here, though, then why are there League members in New York? Usually they base out of a nearby big city, not the Big Apple.”

“ _I’ll see what I can find. Make sure you increase security in your flat._ ”

Dick took that for what Bruce meant, “ _Make sure you and Damian stay safe._ ” He nodded and said, “Will do. Was already planning on it. You’ll let me know what you find out, right?”

“ _Yes._ ”

“Awesome, thanks, B.”

There was another grunt from over the line before it clicked off. Dick turned to Damian. “Sorry you didn’t get to talk to him, Dami. You heard all that, right?”

Damian nodded. “Yes.”

“Good. Come on, let’s get back in there.” Neal slipped his phone back into his pocket while stepping back into the conference room with Damian.

“So?” Peter asked.

“I have a few people looking into it. One of them says that Ra’s doesn’t seem to know where Damian is, so it’s unlikely he sent the League after him. This does, however, pose the question of why there are League members in New York and why they killed Mr. Dexter.”

Hughes nodded. “That is a cause for concern. I’ll let the higher-ups know about the League presence in the city as a precaution.” He turned to Neal, a serious look on his face. “Will you all be safe working on this case?”

Neal tilted his head for a moment to consider. “It may be best if we don’t split up, but I don’t think a safe house will help, since those are easy enough to find. Especially for a member of the League. We can all spend the night at June’s, I’m sure she’ll okay it.”

Hughes nodded. “Check before you make plans.”

“Yep, I’ve just asked her.” And waited a few minutes before a response came. “She said it’s fine.”

“Okay. You three will stay with Caffrey, then,” Hughes told the agents. They all nodded. Neal grimaced internally. This was going to make it difficult to sneak out at night and do some sleuthing of his own like he had originally planned. This would, though, give him more time to work on the security system for the building, so hopefully that meant they would be safe.

The rest of the office day passed quickly and slowly as they all did paperwork and caught up on reports they were behind in (Damian busied himself by throwing paper projectiles around the room that would come flying back to his hand after ricocheting off of several objects around the office. At his distracted many in the office before they were all barked at to get back to work). Soon, it was time to go and they all gathered their things to leave.

They stopped at everyone’s house on the way, all piled into the one car. Diana had shotgun this time. They stopped at Jones’ first and gave him enough time to pack a bag that would last him a couple of days. Diana’s house was next, and Peter’s house was last. They picked up El and explained what was happening while they were there and then left for June’s.

“So if Ra’s doesn’t know about Damian being in New York, but there are League members in New York, what does that mean?” Diana asked in the car.

“Hopefully it’s just a coincidence, but it could be a number of things. We’ll have to see when we find them.”

“Hmm.” Night had fallen by the time they arrived at June’s. She welcomed them in before pulling Neal aside. “I’ve strengthened the security of the building, though I have a feeling you will want to do some of your own. Feel free to make the modifications needed.”

Neal smiled. “Thank you so much, June. I really appreciate it.”

“Just get those bastards out of my city and we’ll call it even.” June patted his shoulder with a tender smile and retreated to another room. Neal turned to the others.

“Alright, so there are two apartments. Mine has both a bedroom and a bed in the main area. Diana, El, you could stay in my apartment if you would like to, or you can take the other apartment with one of the guys. Jones, Peter, if Diana doesn’t want to stay in my flat, then one of you can stay in it instead. Damian will be rooming with me. This way, no one is in an apartment alone.”

Diana eyed Neal before nodding. “I’ll stay in your apartment.”

“Awesome, you can take the bedroom. El?”

“I’ll stay with the boys.”

“Alrighty then. We can all have dinner in my apartment, though. Come on.”

——

Dinner passed in relative silence, the sounds of cutlery moving and plates being scraped clean the only thing to fill the quiet. “This was really good, Neal.”

“Thanks, El, I appreciate it.” He finished the last bite before standing up and rinsing his plate off in the sink, putting it in the dishwasher. “I have a few things I need to do to the other apartment before it’s good to be stayed in, if you’ll excuse me.”

Peter eyed Neal suspiciously before conceding with a nod. Neal went into the closet and grabbed a few things before coming out and exiting the apartment to enter the other swiftly. He added vibration detectors to the doors to the balcony, as well as motion detectors and heat detectors all around the apartment. Next, he placed some of the bugs designed at Wayne R&D around the room, as well as minuscule cameras. He put motion sensors on the patio outside, as well.

After he did a few more things and the rooms were secure, he returned to his own apartment to do the same thing, ignoring the questioning gazes of the others as he did. Damian helped him set up so it went faster. Eventually, around 9, they were finished. He turned to the others. “I’ve increased the security measures for both apartments, that way we’re unlikely to be snuck up on in the middle of the night.”

El smiled, “Thanks Neal.”

Neal nodded and returned the smile. “I’m not going to give you a bedtime because all but one of you are adults, so you’re free to do whatever. There’s a shower in each apartment if any of you want to.”

They all scattered to do whatever they were going to do for the rest of the night. Dick and Damian retreated to the balcony to talk in private. “What do you think is going on with the League?”

Damian looked up at the sky for a moment in contemplation. “I believe it is most likely a rogue group of League members who grandfather isn’t paying attention to because he is too preoccupied with father.”

Dick nodded, his eyes looking up at the stars. “That’s what I was thinking. Though I’m still not quite sure how the murder of Kay Dexter fits into the scenario…”

“Well, while you have guests there is little more we can do. Perhaps, if you let me look into it myself—”

“No. It’s not safe. Even if we have a theory we still aren’t sure why they’re here. I’m not going to put you in danger,” Dick said sternly. Damian scowled and crossed his arms. Dick sighed before smiling and ruffling Damian’s hair. “Don’t worry, Little D, it’ll all turn out fine.”

“I am not worried.”

“I am.”

Dick looked back up at the stars, leaning back into the chair. His eyebrows were furrowed and he could hear the quiet mumbling of activity back in the apartment as the others got ready for the night. He and Damian sat there for a few more minutes before heading back inside. Dick checked his phone when he felt the buzz of receiving a text.

 **Jason:** _I dunno why they’re here, but it’s not just a few League members, it’s a lot. At least twenty, from the intel I’ve received. Let me know if you need help._

 **Dick:** _Will do, thanks_

Dick sighed looking at the New York skyline one more time, whispering to himself, “I am,” before retreating back inside for the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo? Thoughts? Like I’ve said many a time before, even a single word in a comment is appreciated immensely. Kudos are also appreciated. Let me know what you think! It gives me motivation to continue writing these at a consistent pace, otherwise chapters and series parts would only come out whenever I felt like it (one every month or two).  
> Also, for updates and news about my series and other stories I’m working on, check out my tumblr!: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/blerghfish  
> This is where I’ll let you know how far I am with a chapter or whenever I publish new things. You can also see some of my art or ask questions.  
> Thanks for reading everybody!  
> Also, I tried to avoid failing the lamp test for our female characters, but I think I did. Not to worry, I’ll try and give them more action in the next chapter! Keep in mind that my characterizations are based off of bastardized comic book, fanfiction, tv show, etc. amalgamations. I haven’t actually read the comics (I don’t have access to them), so bear with me here!


	3. That Feeling of Dawning Understanding when All of the Puzzle Pieces Fit Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The final face off (audience cheers in the background, someone shouts “finally!”) you’ve all been waiting for.  
> Dick and Damian go after the League of Shadow members that are encroaching in New York and find out just what they’re doing there, as well as finally find the answer to the murder of Kay Dexter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this took so long. I didn’t start writing it until Wednesday and I’ve been busy with stuff all week and I was doing yardwork most of today. I just wanna make sure y’all know that, even if I’m late by a day or two, I will never abandon this series, especially since I have the stories planned out. Once all of my pre-planned stories are all written though, unless I come up with new ideas or am given some, I’ll mark it as done. This one was really long and a monster to write, but it was definitely worth it to see everything work out. I think I tied everything up pretty nicely, but if you don’t think so then let me know!

The night passed without incident (ha, surprise, bet that wasn’t expected).

Even though he had a few people on it already, Dick was up most of the night doing some detective work of his own. He had a roll-away cork board in the bedroom section of the main area since Diana was in the actual bedroom. The corkboard had the clichéd pictures, notes, news clippings, questions, connected by various strings. Damian had been on the couch, but he had stayed up for a while to help Dick.

Once he had gone as far on the corkboard as his brain would allow him, he stayed up a little longer sketching, mainly members of the Batfamily he found himself missing. Diana was awake by eight, and Dick and Damian had been up for a half hour before that.

Diana wandered into the main area, her face bare of makeup and her hair without product or straightening. Neal smiled at her. “Coffee’s already brewed if you need it. Sugar is next to the pot and cream is in the fridge.”

Diana narrowed her eyes before grunting and walking over to the coffee pot and pouring herself some. Neal snickered behind his hand, sharing a look with Damian. Diana leaned against the counter, her cup of coffee already halfway drained. She narrowed her eyes at Neal, causing him to cock his head in confusion.

After a minute or two of the narrow-eyed stare, Neal cleared his throat. “Something you need?” Diana’s eyebrows furthered even further before she took a long swing of her coffee, seeming to absorb the taste before turning her stare back on Neal. “You said last night that you were close with Catwoman, but I did research, and she and the other Gotham villains are notoriously cruel to outsiders, especially other crooks from outside the city. You’re hiding something, and I don’t like it.”

Damian scoffed. “ _Tt_ , you should have held your cover better,” he muttered, though Diana seemed to pick up most of it.

“It’s not _my_ fault!” Dick whispered back indignantly. “Blame Tim! Or you!”

Damian scoffed again but didn’t say anything in response. Diana’s eyes were still narrowed. “So, what are you hiding, Caffrey?”

Neal shook his head. “It’s nothing important.”

Diana cocked her head. “Not important like not informing us that your brother ‘died,’ or not important like not telling us that your little brother is the grandson of a notorious leader of assassins?”

Neal breathed out a sigh of frustration. “You’re going to make me tell you, aren’t you?”

“Unless you want me to bring it up to Peter, yeah. Come on, if it’s really not important then I won’t tell anybody, promise.”

Neal pursed his lips. “I grew up in Gotham.”

Diana’s eyebrows raised in surprise, she seemed to parse over the information. “Really? You, in Gotham? Can’t say I was expecting that.”

Neal shrugged but didn’t say anything else. Diana sighed before saying, “I won’t tell anyone unless it’s relevant to anything.”

“Thanks.”

Diana only gave a nod, raising her coffee cup in salute before downing the rest of it. A sharp knock on the door led to Neal walking over and opening it for the other three that had stayed in the other apartment. “Morning.”

El was the only one that responded with a semi-cheerful, “Morning.” Jones and Peter just made a beeline straight to the coffee pot. Neal chuckled.

“So, since the five of us are going to the office, that leaves El on her own. She’ll be safe here, though it’s unlikely that the League members will come after her.”

Peter eyed Neal, his lips pursed in concern. “How can you be sure she’ll be safe here?”

Neal gave him a smile full of sharp edges (he’d never seen that smile before, it was concerning). “Not only did Damian and I set up security, but so did June, and she has a lot up her sleeve that you wouldn’t expect.” June was a former vigilante who had worked with her husband, Byron, before all the heroes/vigilantes organized the Justice League. Neal trusted the combined security of both herself and him.

Peter gave the okay, although his lips were still pursed and his eyes narrowed. Neal motioned to the bathroom. “Any of you need to freshen up or shower before we leave, feel free.”

Jones went first, having brought his stuff over with him. Neal walked away from the group when he felt his phone buzz with a text notification.

 **Babs:** _Got a location for your suspects_

 **Dick:** _Awesome, send it over_

 **Babs:** _Yep:_ Supersecretlairclub.pdf

 **Dick:** _Nice name_

 **Babs:** _I thought so_ 🙃

 **Dick:** _Thanks_

_Read_

Soon enough, Jason texted him with the number of guys and their weapons situation, offering help if it was needed. Dick said he’d keep that in mind, but it wasn’t needed at the moment.

After a quick check in with Hughes to inform him that the night had gone fine, they all gathered in the conference room. Neal was in charge of the presentation this time, bringing up a map of the city.

“I got word from my sources that the group we’re looking for is based here,” he zoomed in on an area near the bay that was known to have a lot of rundown buildings and warehouses, “And there are a couple dozen people. They’re mostly armed with bladed weapons and a few guns, but not much more than that.”

Jones scoffed. “Oh, of course, only a couple dozen.”

Neal shrugged. “I was honestly expecting worse, so, while this isn’t great, it isn’t horrible.”

“I can get a SWAT Team ready for the raid,” Hughes said.

Neal shook his head. “You send those guys in there, you’re sending at least half of them to their deaths. The League fights dirty, they fight well, and they fight to kill in most cases.”

Peter scoffed. “Well we’re not taking you, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“Out of everyone here, Damian and I are most likely to not die, as well as most capable of capturing them alive. I’m not saying you shouldn’t come, because you’d come in handy, but sending an entire SWAT Team will give us too many people to protect efficiently.”

Peter didn’t even know why he bothered to be surprised at this point. “You’re qualified?”

Neal shrugged. “Like I said, Peter, just because I don’t like it doesn’t mean I don’t know how to use it. That doesn’t only apply to guns, you know.”

Peter sighed but didn’t say anything else. Diana furrowed her eyebrows. “I’m still not quite seeing how the start of this case, the murder of Kay Dexter, fits into all of this.”

“Dexter was working with the League. Or, at least, he was working with some of their shell-companies. He was a civilian plant to keep an eye on Caffrey,” Damian said. His eyes were narrowed and, though he looked somewhat bored with the conversation, he was still paying rapt attention. “He, however, was loyal to my grandfather, and, if Caffrey and I are correct, the faction of League members currently in the city are rogues who are trying to overthrow Grandfather. They got rid of Dexter so he wouldn’t tattle on them, made it look like a robbery.”

Neal nodded. “Exactly. Though I’m still curious as to why they chose New York of all places. I mean, they knew that both Jason and I lived here, so there would have been safer places to set up base.”

Hughes steepled his fingers together as he thought. “Could they be after one of the two of you?”

Neal seemed to contemplate it for a second before shaking his head. “Unlikely. If anyone it would have been Jason, but we would have heard from them by now if that were the case. He’s not exactly in the safest of places, or surrounded by law enforcement like I am, and Ra’s has no personal connection to me. If anyone, it might be Damian, but he’s only been here a few days, and word on the street is that they’ve been here longer.”

“It’s against protocol to not take a SWAT Team, and it’s definitely against protocol to allow a ten year old to join the raid,” Hughes pointed out, his eyebrow raised.

“It doesn’t have to go in the report.” Neal shrugged.

“I will not condone lying on my agents’ reports,” Hughes snapped. He added as an afterthought, “No matter how much it may be warranted.”

Neal cocked his head. “I’d say that they could just not mention that he had been there, but I feel like you’re the kind of person that considers lying by omission as lying still, so that wouldn’t work.”

Hughes’ raised his eyebrows a little further before he nodded in agreement. He cleared his throat, then, and said, “However, if you and your brother were to get there before everyone else, and your anklet showed you at home, eyewitnesses can be mislead. Maybe you weren’t even there in the first place.”

Peter sputtered. “Sir—”

“I want those sons of bitches out of my city, and if I have to fudge a few lines to save lives then I’m willing to do it just this once.”

Peter scowled and sat back with his arms crossed, but said nothing.

Neal gave a grim smile. “Alright, we’ll need a head start of about twenty minutes, but first we need to stop at June’s so we can pick up a few things.”

“What things?” Jones had leaned back in his seat, his hands clasped and his eyebrows pinched.

“Just a few gadgets that will help us take down the League members. Nothing really big or anything that will pack a huge punch.”

Peter looked skeptical of the truth of those words but let it slide. “Let us know when you’ve left June’s so we can count down that head start.”

“Will do. Let’s go, Dami.”

Peter watched their backs with an odd feeling that he couldn’t quite put a name to.

Most of Dick’s things were in a secret compartment in the closet (a compartment that both June and Byron had used to hide their hero things back in the day). Dick didn’t want to be caught wearing anything resembling his Nightwing suit (especially since Peter’s team would be there—he wasn’t quite ready to let that cat out of the bag yet), but he did put on heavy-duty Bat-designed Kevlar, which was thinner than typical Kevlar. He put on a t-shirt and a jacket as well as the pants part of his suit (fortunately it separated from the top).

Damian put on the same Kevlar as well as a long-sleeved shirt and the pants he wore while superhero-ing. The sheath for his sword was quickly strapped to his back as both he and Dick made short work of stocking their utility belts. Dick’s escrima sticks went in their holsters, one on each leg. He double-checked that he and Damian both had plenty of zip ties before deeming them both ready.

Dick sent out a quick text to Jason letting him know what they were doing and to key into a specific comm frequency, namely the one Dick and Damian were using, just in case backup was required (though he hoped it wouldn’t be). Jason quickly sent back a text of confirmation before Dick and Damian both heard they short and quiet burst of static that came with someone joining the frequency they were on.

“ _What’s up Dickface, Demon Brat._ ”

“Nice to hear from you too, Jay.”

“ _Yeah, yeah. Let me know if you need anything._ ”

Dick gave a small grunt of acknowledgement before texting Peter and telling him they were about to leave, so he should start the twenty minute count down in exactly two minutes. Peter sent back a confirmation and then went silent.

Dick used a specific key that he and Tim had designed to unlock his anklet, making it loosen enough that he could slip it over his foot while it was still on so that it would place him as still at home. He set it on the dining room table before ignoring it (there was no love lost on the tiny but hated device).

Dick and Damian were going to get there by motorcycle—one that June had offered to stow in her basement—which had a special secret opening to a back alley in the street outside. While putting their helmets on, Dick leveled Damian with a serious gaze. “We don’t quite know what the group is doing here, so I want you to be extra careful. They may be after you, so unless I say so I want you to stick close to me.”

However much Damian may not be perfectly obedient inside or out of the mask, he was still (fortunately) well-versed enough in the script of typical mannerisms and social rules to realize that now was not the time to argue. Dick had proven himself competent when he briefly took over the cowl, so Damian trusted him to do things properly. Damian gave a quick, sharp nod to show that he understood, one which Dick returned in kind.

The motorcycle he and Damian were using wasn’t modified like the typical R-cycle, but it also was not the same as one you would typically buy. June and Byron had modified it when they still used it. Since it would be odd to see a ten year old driving a motorcycle, they only took the one; Damian wrapped his arms around Dick snugly.

They parked the motorcycle a ways away from the warehouse the rogue faction was in so that they weren’t overheard, and proceeded to creep along the outside, avoiding the very limited number of cameras that were being used as security.

Dick was going to take the side entrance on the bottom level as a way to draw the attention of those inside. Damian would drop in from above after taking out the two posted on the roof. They had roughly thirteen minutes before the FBI got there, and Dick had to make sure he wasn’t seen when they did. Piece of cake.

Damian soon gave the signal that the two on the roof had been taken care of. Dick signaled the affirmative before moving to the side door. He opened it, quickly and quietly locking the man posted at it in a headlock and dragging him outside. He swiftly knocked the man hard on the head to knock him out before moving inside. Damian had gotten to the rafters inside.

They both managed to take out another ten people in total before someone noticed. “The Bat brats are here!” A woman cried out, a black cloth covering the lower half of her face. Everyone’s heads turned as though on a swivel, showing various levels of panic at the announcement.

Dick ducked behind a steel crate as soon as the pointy objects started flying. Damian was content to dodge all of them and leave the rest to the Kevlar. Dick darted out and nailed three people with his WingDings (hehe, he still loved that name, no matter how stupid Jason thought they were) and causing them to fall from their perches.

The projectiles eventually stopped in favor of surrounding him. He looked at his watch, eight and a half minutes left.

“ _Remember, we just want the Demon child, this one isn’t needed alive,_ ” a man whispered in Arabic. Dick’s eyes furrowed in confusion. So, they were after Damian, but why? Leverage? Against whom? Batman or Ra’s?

The next two minutes passed in a blur as Dick pulled out his escrima sticks and attacked. He ducked under the swing of a sword and slammed the stick into right above someone’s kneecap, quickly darting out of the way and launching a roundhouse kick at someone else’s face. A woman landed a lucky hit with her sword on his hip, giving him a long gash. He dropped down into a sweeping kick before springing up and kneeing her in the head as she fell.

Damian was fighting a few feet away. He ad already dropped four of them and had three left. He was bleeding from his nose and had an already forming bruise on the corner of his forehead. His face was pinched in a focused scowl as he ducked away from the swing of a sword in a tight roll, coming up a foot away and slamming a fist into the man’s stomach.

Dick smiled before fully refocusing on his own fight. Five more minutes left. Eventually, he only had the one woman left. He held her in a tight headlock as Damian walked over, having finished his own group up. Dick put his mouth up to the woman’s ear, whispering, “ _What were your plans with Damian?_ ” in Arabic. She struggled again before he tightened his arm around her throat. He growled, “There are very few things in life that make me truly angry, but targeting any member of my family is one of those things. What. Were. Your. _Plans?_ ”

She snarled at him, her jaw snapping as she tried to struggle free. Dick tightened his arm more, causing her to scrabble at his arm. Within a few seconds she sagged in defeat. Dick loosened his arm just a smidge to allow her to breathe better as she said, “Many of us don’t agree with the way Ra’s is running things anymore. He has gone soft and made many stupid decisions, it is felt that he is no longer fit to run the League. However, if he were to disappear, Damian would become the next Head. Living with the Batman has made him soft too.”

Dick’s eyes widened as he finished piecing things together. “You were going to hold Damian hostage and force Ra’s to step down and hand leadership over to whomever you wanted. But there have been reports of you being in the city for weeks now, even though Damian has only been here for a few days.”

The woman scoffed. “We knew that Ra’s was going to Gotham to try and take Damian back. You were in New York, and we knew that in order to get Damian away from his grandfather’s clutches, Wayne would send him to you in New York. We’ve been setting up for _weeks_.”

”What about Kay Dexter?”

”He was sympathetic to Al Ghul and he knew about our operation. He threatened to tell Ra’s about it so we had him disposed of.”

Dick checked his watch. Three minutes. He sighed and elbowed the woman on the crown of the head, dropping her to the floor like a sack of flour. “Red Hood?”

“ _Yeah?_ ”

“I need you to come coordinate with the FBI so that the rogue League members don’t get away. I’m going to head back to the office since it’s closer and call in a JL escort.”

“ _Will do. I’ll be there in a minute and a half._ ”

Dick smirked. “Close by, were you? You worried?”

“ _Yeah, yeah, shut yer trap._ ”

Dick scoffed but remained silent. He and Damian used the couple minutes they had left to restrain the assassins with ropes tying their arms behind their backs. The two moved all of them into a pile in the middle of the building, collecting those they had knocked out outside.

Soon enough they could hear a motorcycle revving to a stop outside. The door swung open, Jason striding in with his full Red Hood regalia on. “What’s up, dweebs.”

“Nice to see you too, Jason.”

Damian only nodded. “Todd.”

The sound of sirens only a small ways away rang through the air. The three Bat brothers exchanged glances. “Time for us to go,” Dick told Damian. He nodded and followed Dick up into the rafters and out through the roof, headed toward their motorcycle and then the FBI building.

The three agents who entered were greeted with a confusing sight. They all lowered their guns slightly. Jason gave them a small wave. “What’s up. I’m escorting you back to the FBI building with the prisoners so they don’t escape on route.”

Jones furrowed his brows. “But aren’t you Red Hood?”

Jason shrugged. “Yep. Somewhat supported by the Justice League, though, so while I may not be considered a hero, I’m not the one you should be worried about.”

Peter narrowed his eyes, a contemplative look on his face. “You seem familiar somehow. I’ve met you before.”

Jason smirked under the hood, not that they could tell. “Nope, I dunno what you’re talking about, Agent Burke. I’ve never met you before in my life.”

Peter only pursed his lips, not saying anything else. The loading of the assassins into the van that had been brought to contain them was simple enough. Jason had to knock a few of them out again, though, while the agents weren’t looking. Diana looked between the motorcycle that was still parked and the van that contained the League members.

“One of you can ride with me. I don’t want any of you in the back with the assassins if any of them wake up while we head back to the office.”

“We’re not headed to the office. We don’t have high enough security to contain them there.”

Jason allowed his tone to convey his humor at the situation. “We’re taking them back to the office because there will be someone there who can contain them.”

“Whom?” Jones asked.

“Someone. Come on, let’s go before they all wake up.”

The agents gave him skeptical looks but complied, and soon they were on the road, Jason following behind the van with Jones on the bike behind him.

They came to a stop in front of the FBI building where both Dick and Damian were waiting for them, a brunet man with a green mask and trench coat next to them. Jason got off of the motorcycle and walked over, followed by the three agents. “Lantern,” he greeted.

“Hood. I hear you and these two have some riff-raff for me to take care of?”

Jason nodded. “In the van.”

The agents were too busy gawking to say much. Though Diana managed to get her wits about her enough to stick her hand out for a firm handshake and greeting. Hal offered her a winning smile, which she returned, only more muted. Peter cleared his throat, giving Neal a look that said they would be talking about this later. Neal grimaced but returned his attention to Green Lantern.

“They should all still be unconscious and shouldn’t give you any troubles. They were trying to overthrow Ra’s by forcing him to step down.”

Lantern nodded, a serious look on his face. “Got it. I’ll let Bats know. See you when planned?”

Neal nodded, watching as Lantern surrounded the van in a growing green bubble and lifting both it and himself off of the ground. “I’ll return your van to you later!” He tossed over his shoulder as he flew off. The agents watched in awe as he left. Jason gave Dick a punch on the shoulder before going over to his bike and peeling off into the evening traffic.

Dick grabbed Damian in a side-hug. “I’m going to get you home. B is coming to pick you up tomorrow morning, so we’re going to make sure you’re all packed before you go to sleep.”

Damian grumbled but followed him away. Peter grabbed onto Neal’s bicep, causing him to stop. He motioned Damian ahead and turned around.

“How do you know Justice League members? Have they gone after you before?” Peter demanded. Diana and Jones listened in, stern expressions on their faces even though their eyes gave away their curiosity.

Neal shrugged. “No, I haven’t gotten on their bad sides. And let’s just say that I’m close with a lot of them.”

Peter looked like he wanted to rip out what short hair he had. “How?! You’re a criminal!”

Neal glared, but just as quickly as it came, a smile was back on his face. “I have my ways.”

Diana frowned. “Who is this mysterious ‘B’ that you keep mentioning?”

“He’s my guardian, Damian’s father. Now, I need to make sure Damian actually packs, and I feel like you have a report to write.” Neal walked away.

“How did you manage to take out two dozen highly trained assassins?” Jones called after him. Neal turned around and gave him a mysterious, sharp smile, before seeming to blend in with the shadows and disappear, leaving the three agents standing there in confusion.

——

Hughes sat up in his office after hearing the verbal reports. He fit another piece into the puzzle he’d been building about Caffrey and his past. Things were slowly but surely making sense.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So how was it? Like I’ve said before, even a single word in the comment box will make my day (unless it’s cruel). Admittedly I rushed to get this done since it’s late, and for some reason I kept almost falling asleep while editing it to fit ao3’s format, so I apologize if some errors and typos slipped my notice. I’m having so much fun writing this and thank you all for your continuous positive feedback, it’s really giving me the motivation to work on this consistently.  
> I’m pretty sure this one wasn’t as funny as my other ones, but, while I’m not particularly happy about that, I’m also not upset because it was hard to balance that humorous inner monologue with the action that needed to take place so oh well.  
> Also, I did throw in Cass. I did some research, and I hadn’t realized that Cass came before Steph (for some reason I thought it was the other way around), so I know that both Steph and Cass’ mentions are kind of throwaway mentions and just out of the blue, not really planned and cemented, if that makes sense? But I also don’t have the mental energy to go back and rewrite it so that they were there from the beginning, sorry.  
> So, thank you all for reading, this one was fun to experiment with since it had actual plot and chapters, drop a comment, I don’t care how long, or a kudos, and if you want more then subscribe to the series, I update every week (give or take a day).

**Author's Note:**

> How was it? Comments keep this series going, I swear. I would never have had the motivation to get past the second or third one if I didn’t have so many supporters. Even if it’s just a single word, I promise I will almost always love it (unnecessary hate, however, that I will not).  
> I’m not a huge fan of the idioms comment, and I was trying to say something else but the words wouldn’t work so I was forced to leave it there, sorry.  
> I’ve had so much fun writing these and watching/reading the reactions of everyone, it’s astounding. Thank you everyone!  
> And thank you Row for leaving such great comments on all of my works, I always appreciate reading and replying to them.


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